This Time Around
by SLheartDM
Summary: 10 years later. Hermione is a famed appearance stylist in the wizard realm, while Draco is a wealthy man starting struggling to find his inner..style. When fate deals a hand in the game of love, who's to say the impossible can't happen? [[COMPLETE]]
1. Mya

So, here I am, busily rewriting my story. I was reading some of my reviews, and I am so glad that this was brought up. This story was rushed like no other. There are no details, no nothing, and the ending? Pure rubbish! So here I am, rewriting it. So, for those of you who haven't read it before, please read! And for those who have, it wouldn't hurt to read it again and see the changes I've made. Thanks! – SLheartDM

* * *

"_Stupid mudblood. It was all a joke." _

_Stupid mudblood…_

_Stupid mudblood…_

_Studpid mudblood…_

**bzzzzz bzzzz**

A hand reached over and slapped the alarm clock off.

Seconds later, a frazzled brunette sat up, still groggy from her sleep.

Hermione groaned, how long had it been since she had had that dream? She stretched momentarily before her roommate and best friend Ginny Weasley came bursting through her bedroom door.

"Mya! Listen, there's breakfast in the oven and coffee, uh here, wear this!" She drew out a formal dress from Hermione's closet and threw it on her bed. "Okay, I've got to go. lunch?" Ginny pulled on her jacket quickly and grabbing her purse, glared at Hermione intently for an answer.

"Mm..I'll call you. Kay?" Hermione rubbed her eyes, still not quite awake yet.

Ginny sighed. "Alright! But you better get moving or you're going to be late for work." She rolled her eyes, sometimes she could not believe how the smartest girl in Hogwarts could have become such a forgetful nitwit.

"Work!" Hermione sat up straighter, her eyes wide open. "Oh my God! I have a meeting in-" She glanced warily at the time that was projected on the ceiling by her wand. "-15 minutes! UGH!" Rolling herself out of bed, Hermione ran to her bathroom to wash up.

"Bye Mya!" Ginny's voice cried exasperated from the living room. "I really have to go, the ministry is expecting the minister's daughter any minute!"

"Brhhyye!" Hermione managed to make out with toothpaste in her mouth. _Ugh._ Just great, on the day of the most important meeting of her life, she had to wake up late. She ran a comb through her sleek brown hair, glancing at her reflection momentarily in the mirror. _No time for a shower!_

Grumbling, she pulled her thick tresses into a low ponytail and slipped into the dress that Ginny had placed out for her.

"Perfect!"

She twirled around in front of the floor lengthed mirror and ran out the door, grabbing a bagel and some coffee before she apparated to work.

So much for a good start…

Hermione silently slipped into the conference room, closing the door behind her with a cup of steaming coffee in her hands. She was only 5 minutes late…

"Nice of you to join us, Ms. Granger." Hermione's coworker, Emily Patsy said loudly, pursing her lips disapprovingly.

Hermione glared at her. 'How nice of you to announce it to the entire world.' She said mockingly under her breath. She rolled her eyes. Thank Merlin she had never been assigned on a project with Ms. Emily Patsy. She swear, that lady would have been hexed and double hexed in less than five minutes. _Ooohh she just made her wanna..ARGH_

Emily Patsy, who had seen the face that Hermione was making at her shot her an amused look, and looked back at the front of the room.

Hermione smoothed out her dress, and pushed a few stray strands of hair behind her ears. "Whew," She chuckled, "Sorry about that, I got up kind of late today." She looked around at the somber faces around the conference table and cleared her throat.

"Sit down, sit down." A balding man waved at her from the front of the room. He had his wand in his hand, and seemed to be in the middle of a presentation. "We were just going through our new projects."

"I owe you, Jerry." Hermione mouthed as she took her seat at the end of the table. Once again, her boss had saved her from a good lashing from the upper officials. It was a good thing that she always made it a habit to bring him coffee daily.

Jerry winked at her before he continued, extending his wand out at the wall in front of them. "This, is our newest customer." He said as a picture of a blonde man in his twenties projected from his wand. "He is the newest bachelor on the block, and as you can see," Jerry pointed at the dress robe arousing laughter from the seated people. "He has some..uh..how do you say..problems with his choice of clothing?" His eyes glittered in amusement. "Anyways what he needs is a publicity agent slash stylist, and I think I know the perfect girl for the job!"

Hermione's eyes scanned over the handsome face and over the chiseled body dressed in a flashy way to flashy in her opinion green dress robe. She grimaced. He definately didn't have a style fit for his looks, but what did he need a publicity agent for? He looked like he would have a hard time dodging attention! Especially from the female population.

"Mya?" Jerry's eyes twinkled as she drifted out of her daydream. "This, is your new project."

"M-my new project?" Hermione gasped.

"Yes, all yours. You deserve it after all the hard work you have done for this company." Jerry started clapping, and soon the whole room was clapping loudly. "Alright, alright! Meetings over!" The ever-cheery boss announced as the clapping died down.

* * *

Hermione was sitting at her desk, glancing over the file thatJerry had given her after the meeting, stunned that she had gotten such an important project. _Why me?_

Glancing at her watch, she realized it was already 11, and remembering she had to call Ginny, she pulled her wizo-cell out from her purse and dialed Ginny's number.

"Hey, it's Mya." Hermione held her cell phone to her ear.

"Oh, hey Mya! So where are we going for lunch?" Ginny's high voice at the other end of the phone brought her spirits up.

"Mmm..How bout Hogsmeade? Just like old times! Er..let's say 12:30 in front of Madame Puddifoot's Cafe?" Hermione suggested.

"Sure. You seem excited, anything you want to talk about?" Ginny asked.

"Nothing really..oh shit Ms. Patsy is coming. Bye!" Hermione heard a snort at the other end before she hung up and stuffed her cell into her pocket. She straightened out just before Ms. Patsy saw her stuff her cell phone into her pocket.

"Ms. Granger." Emily nodded curtly as she walked by.

"Ms. Patsy." Hermione turned back to the file laying on her desk.

"You know you didn't deserve this project, you little-" Emily snarled as she leaned superiorly over Hermione.

"You little what? Bitch? Mudblood?" Hermione turned around, glaring at Emily. "Oh, I've heard it all, and I don't need to hear it from you. So why don't you budger off and leave me alone?" She smiled angelically. "Byebye."

Emily hrmphed and stalked off, looking murderously around at anyone who dared to cross her path.

_Oh god, I take enough shit from everyone, do you really have to make my life worse! _Making her way past the rows of rooms and cubicles, Hermione stopped to wave goodbye to Jerry before she left for her lunch break.

_This job seems too good to be true. _Hermione thought as she waited for the floo-elevator down to the first floor. She whistled as she waited, tapping her foot gently with her tune, totally oblivious to the fact that the elevator had just arrived.

**Ahem.** The owner of a deep voice cleared his throat, bring Hermione back to the office complex. "You going?" The deep voice behind her made her jump, almost making her trip over her own feet had not the owner of the voice caught her by the waist.

Hermione blushed, looking up into silver green eyes. She found her breath had gotten caught in her throat. Never before had she seen a man more gorgeous than the particular species before her.

"You alright?" The man's voice broke her inspection of his eyes.

Hermione cleared her throat, picking herself up out of his reach. "Sorry 'bout that." She mumbled as she walked into the elevator.

"No problem. I'm sorry about scaring you like that." The man followed her into the elevator, pressing the button for the first floor, and then looking around the elevator as if it was some magnificent piece of technology.

Casually, Hermione snuck a glance at the man: blond, chiseled features, gorgeous gray eyes and the nicest pair of arms she had ever seen. _He looks...familiar?_

"So, you work here?" The man said, turning to look at her with his stunning gray eyes.

"Mmhm. You?" Hermione turned her gaze away, hoping he did not see her blush.

"Oh, just looking around." He grinned as the door slid open, revealing the first floor of the building. "Well, I'll see you around then?"

Hermione nodded dumbly as he walked away. She blushed when he turned around, and after shooting her an wink, he exited through the main doors in the lobby. _Damn that man is fine! _Almost instantly, Hermione found herself daydreaming about a date with this handsome man.


	2. him again!

Hermione stumbled up the steps of a well guarded apartment complex. _Wow, this guy must be freaking rich to afford to live in a place like this._ Hermione thought appreciatively as she glanced at the portraits lining the walls, reminding her of Hogwarts. She was going to meet her client for the first time, and her palms were sweating even before he met him!

"Common, Mya, you can do this. Don't let Jerry down!" Hermione muttered to herself as she wiped her wet palms on her skirt and rang the doorbell.

"Coming!" A deep voice came from within the apartment, and moments later the door popped open.

"Hi, I am Mya from Wiztyles, and you must be-?" Hermione glanced up from her clipboard.

"Hey, you're that girl from the elevator." His eyes smiled on their own.

"And you're that guy from the elevator..." Hermione silently cursed herself for not having noticed that the man from the elevator and the man on the slideshow were the same person.

"Draco Malfoy. Nice to meet you." Draco held out his hand, flashing Hermione an amazingly white smile.

"Nice to meet you too, Draco.." She shook his hand. "Wait, the Draco Malfoy?" Hermione could barely supress her surprise.

"Yea." Draco furrowed his eyebrows. "Do I know you?"

"No, no." Hermione lied, shaking her head. _THE DRACO MALFOY?!_

"Would you like to come in?" Draco stole a glance at her from beneath his toussled blonde fringe, moving to allow her room into his apartment.

"Uh, so, this is a nice place." She glanced around.

"Um, yea." Draco stuck his hands into his pair of muggle-looking jeans. "Have a seat. Would you like something to drink?" He ran a hand through his unkempt blond mop, which only made him look sexier.

"N-no." Hermione gulped, ripping her gaze away from his body. "I'm fine." She cleared her throat. "So, shall we get started?"

"Yea, ok." He sat down next to her, their thighs touching as if it was no big deal.

"First question, what kind of style do you like?" Hermione squirmed uncomfortably.

"Well, let's see. I like the whole roughed up look, or the whole bad-" Draco was cut off by a knock on the door. He sighed and smiled apologetically. "Hold on."

"AY! Mr. Malfoy. Cooperation is the only way this will work!" Hermione heard a voice, heavily laced with an spanish accent, and an annoyed Draco responding to his outburst.

"Mya, meet Mr. Valdejo. My manager." Draco rolled his eyes as they stepped back into the foyer. "Mr. Valdejo, meet Mya, my stylist."

"Nice to meet you, Mya. Please call me Turner." He flashed Hermione a wide smile.

"Pleased. Well, I've got to go meet my room mate for some girl time. See you soon?" Hermione grabbed her clipboard and portfolio and heading towards the door, oblivious to the fact that both Turner and Draco were staring at her well-defined rear end.

"She's a keeper." Turner smirked nudging Draco, who smiled. "I know."

* * *

Hermione manuevered her way through the train, sitting down in the nearest free seat. Just her luck to be assigned to the asshole that had ruined her entire seven years at Hogwarts. The asshole and his cronies.. 

_She flipped through her Hogwarts: A History book, stopping as her fingers ran across a piece of parchment that didn't belong. Quickly pulling it out, she recognized the boyish scrawl of Draco Malfoy on the outside of the note. Eagerly, Hermione ripped it open, devouring the contents._

_'My Dearest Hermione,_

_You don't know how much I love you. Meet me after potions in the prefect's common room. Maybe we could get to know each other better._

_Love,_

_Draco Malfoy xoxoxox'_

_Hermione turned a fierce shade of red. It was a dream come true! The guy she had been crushing on secretly for so long had finally returned her feelings. _

_

* * *

"Hermione? Where are you going?" Harry's brows furrowed. _

"Oh, um I have to meet a friend." Hermione said, avoiding his gaze.

"Alright then, be careful, okay?" Harry smiled as if he knew what was going on, pressing his lips into her ear, he whispered. "If he hurts you, I'll kill him."

Hermione turned a fierce shade of red, nodded and ran out of sight, leaving a chuckling Harry behind.

_Hermione stepped into the common room to find Draco drooped over Pansy Parkinson, snogging her senseless. She stopped dead in her tracks, gaping at the adolescent that she thought loved her. Gathering up her courage, she walked over and tapped him on the shoulder,__ tears streaming down her face._

_"I thought you loved me Draco." _

_"Love you? A filthy mudblood?" Draco's face twisted itself up into the most disgusting of smirks__._

_"The letter..that you wrote me.." Hermione's face was scrunched up in pain. _

_"That letter was a joke." He said, rubbing the salt deeper into Hermione's open wound. Draco went back to snogging Pansy, only stopping when he realized she was still standing there, clutching the letter to her heart. "What? Can't you see we are busy? Budger off willya?!" He smirked and turned back to Pansy._

* * *

"Mya! Over here!" Hermione was shaken from her thoughts as she turned to see a redhead bobbing up and down in front of their meeting spot, Kanfinkle's Pottery Shop. 

"Ginny!" Hermione rushed over, nearly knocking over an old witch in her path. "Oh my God, you won't believe this!" Hermione gushed, running into Ginny's open arms.

"Guess who my new client is?" Hermione burst as she released herself from Ginny's warm embrace.

Ginny thought hard. "I don't have the slightest idea." She shrugged, slinking her arm through Hermione's and hauling her towards the grand opening of Crunchie's Cafe.

"None other than Draco Malfoy!" Hermione glanced sideways, bursting out in laughter upon seeing the look on Ginny's face. Her jaw had dropped so low Hermione was afraid she was going to trip over it.

"D-Draco Malfoy? From Hogwarts? That annoying..prat that played that disgusting joke on you in the fourth year?" Finally gathering herself together, Ginny managed to speak.

"Yup. That's him, Ferret-boy all grown up." Hermione chuckled at the memory of a bouncing Malfoy after Mad-Eye Moody had finished with him.

"Is..he still hot?" Ginny prodded Hermione in the arm.

"Oh God, yes."

"Dear Merlin! Do you know what this means?" Ginny said with a mischieveous twinkle in her eyes.

Hermione stared at her, suddenly catching on to the mysterious smile on Ginny's face.

"Revenge."


	3. the sweet smell of revenge

Seems like this story isn't attracting as many readers..hmm i wonder why..cuz its not R rated?

pwhahaha

* * *

"So what have we got to do?" Hermione asked, a cup of coffee clasped in her hands as she sat face to face with Ginny in a small coffee shop in Hogsmeade.

"Give him a taste of his own medicine. That's what we are going to do."

"How are we going to do that?" Hermione glanced up quizzically.

"Simple. We get him to fall in love with you, and then dump him. Harsh. Unexpected. Brilliant!" Ginny grinned.

"Well..it may be a little harsh..We should be mature about this. Maybe i could just make him look really stupid?"

"He practically ruined your life, Mya. Compared to this, it's nothing!"

"But Gin-"

"HE RUINED YOUR LIFE!"

"Well, what makes you think he would even fall for a 'mudblood' like me?"

Ginny swept her eyes up and down Hermione's upper body. "With a little help, you could be the next bachlorette." Ginny winked at her playfully.

"I still don't think this is a good idea."

"Aw please Hermione!" Ginny pouted.

Hermione glanced at her and rolled her eyes. "Alright..let's do it."

"YES!" Ginny smiled, clapping her hands together.

"Alright, alright! But remember, when this 'operation' goes down the drain, don't forget what I said!" Hermione huffed, putting air quotations around the word "operation"

"Oh, it will work. It will work beautifully." Ginny narrowed her eyes and rubbed her hands together like an evil witch ready to set her minions out to do her dirty work.

"So, what are we going to do now? We have a whole sunday afternoon in front of -" Hermione stopped at the mysterious glint apparent in Ginny's eyes again. _Uh, oh. I'm not going to like this..am I?_

"We are not going to do anything. _You _are however, going to get yourself a date with Mr. Malfoy." Ginny smiled at the shocked expression on her face. "Here give me your phone."

Hermione shook her head.

"Give it!" Ginny commanded.

"No." Hermione bluntly refused.

"Fine then, I'll just have to call Malfoy on my phone and tell him how you are still madly in love with him." Ginny smirked. _Blackmail! The stuff of life._

"YOU WOULDN'T! And I am NOT in love with him!" Hermione snarled.

"Watch me!" Ginny grinned, reaching into her purse for her own cell.

"FINE! Have it!" Hermione cried, exasperated, handing her wizo-cell over to Ginny.

"Thank you. Now sit back and watch the magic begin." Ginny scrolled through the directory, stopping at the listing under D. Malfoy and proceeded to dial his number.

"Hello? This is Draco Malfoy."

Ginny wiggled her eyebrow at Hermione before she began. "Oh, hey this is Mya, from Wiztyles."

"Hey. What's up?"

"Well," Ginny began, smiling at the astonished look upon Hermione's face. "I was wondering if I could spend sometime with you, ya know, so I can get a feel of your style."

Draco chuckled. "Really. I was just going to call you and ask you the same thing. I have this conference tonight at the local meeting hall. Would you like to check that out?"

"Definately." Ginny grinned.

"Alright then, I'll pick you up at seven."

"Sure. Okay. See you tonight. Bye." Ginny flipped the phone closed, looking up at Hermione smugly.

"So?" Hermione asked anxiously. "What did he say?"

"You got yourself a date." Ginny screamed, waving her arms around in a victory dance.

Hermione couldn't hide her happiness. "Now what do we do?" Hermione asked.

"Shopping, there are a few things..we need to buy."

* * *

"NO! No no no no no. There is NO way I am going to wear a push-up bra." Hermione pushed the lacy red bra away from her.

"Come on Mya, guys dig chicks with big breasts." Ginny gave her a knowing glance.

"NO!"

"Why in the world not?!"

"BECAUSE!"

"For a know-it-all, you certainly don't know anything about men. They are pigs. They will fuck anything with big boobs and a vagina." Ginny rolled her eyes.

"Gin..."

"Not that I was implying anything..you know he was the 'slytherin sex god.' Come on Mya. Please! Don't you want to get back at him for ruining your life?!" Ginny waved the bra in front of Hermione's face.

"FINE!" Hermione shot her a 'you are soooo beyond dead' look and stuffed the bra in their shopping bag.

* * *

Draco walked into Gettem's pub, a smile on his face.

"Met a girl?" A voice came from behind him, causing him to whirl around.

Draco relaxed when he realized it was Blaise, his best friend of 5 years. "More like an angel." He said as they walked towards the bar.

"Name?"

"Mya. She's my stylist." Draco downed his whiskey in one gulp.

"And?" Blaise straddled a stool, peering at Draco intently.

"And..she is beautiful, smart, funny. Everything. She's perfect!" Draco closed his eyes, picturing Mya's face in his head.

"And you've known her for how long?" Blaise's eyes bore into Draco's skull.

"Two, three days maybe?" Draco sighed. "But I can't get her out of my mind, and its fucking creeping me out. I have never felt this way before.."

"What is up with you, man? What happened to that slut..Panky? Pasty?" Blaise snickered. "What would your father think if he was still alive today? Tsk. Tsk. 'Pleasure, my boy, pleasure.'" He quoted.

"_Pansy_ and I broke up. It was never going to work." Draco slammed his shotglass down on the counter. "The relationship was purely.._sexual_. We fucked, it was fun, and now it's over."

"You've been together for 10 years on and off, and now all of a sudden its over?!" Blaise nearly choked on his drink

"I've matured Blaise, I'm no longer that little to-be-Deatheater fucking Pansy just for the fun of it. I know what I want now."

"Don't tell me that now you are looking for a girl to settle down with and start a family." Blaise mocked.

Draco raised a blonde eyebrow. "Perhaps I am."

Blaise patted Draco in the back. "Good luck, mate. Good luck."


	4. the date

YEs you guys, this story is based on 'this time around' which played on abc family. haha i thought i already said so..many times!

* * *

Hermione stood in front of her floor length mirror, eyeing herself dressed in a sexy black dress and the newly bought push up bra which gave her more cleavage than she ever had. "I don't know, Gin.."

"Oh no you dont! This is the perfect outfit!" Ginny clapped her hands together in glee. "Trust me on this one Mya!"

"Fine, but just this once!" Hermione spun around again, loving the feel of the silky black dress against her bare skin.

Ginny started to do another version of her victory dance just as the doorbell rang. "He's here! Come on!" She pushed Hermione out of the room. "GO GET THE DOOR!"

"Alright!" Hermione snatched her purse out of Ginny's hand and rushed over to the front door, slowing down momentarily to smooth down her dress before she opened it.

Her breath caught in her throat as she opened the door to a handsome blonde man dressed casually in slacks and a black leather jacket.

"He-wow. You look nice." Draco smiled at her.

Hermione blushed. "You don't think it's too much? I can go change if it is." She turned to go, but felt a hand on her arm.

"No, you look great, too bad it will be wasted at that dull conference." He pouted his lips playfully. "So, do you want to get going?"

"Yea, okay." Hermione took the offered arm and followed Draco out of the apartment building, shutting the door behind her, glaring back at Ginny's wink.

"Well, I still have an hour before I actually have to be at the meeting. Anything you want to do?" Draco turned his face towards Hermione.

"We could take a walk." She blushed at her proposal.

"Well alright! We'll do what the little lady wants." He joked.

"So what do you think about my choice in wear?" Draco spun around for her as they walked down the sidewalk.

"It's nice. I would say you certainly don't need a stylist anymore." Hermione smiled shyly, wondering why or how he was still able to make her blush the way he had at Hogwarts.

"Well, I wouldn't know about that. My fiance bought this for me." He smirked.

"Oh, right." Hermione tried to smile. _Fiance?_

_'Well look at him' _A voice said in her head.

_Oh.._

_'Why do you care? It's not like you like him.'_

_I-I don't.._

_'It's all a joke, Mya. You can't fall for him! You'd disappoint Ginny!'_

_I..I'll try not to._

"Mya?"

Hermione looked up to see a concerned Draco staring at her intently. "Are you alright?"

"Mm. I was just thinking."

"'Bout what?" He walked a little closer to her. "My fiance?" He chuckled watching Hermione's cheeks burn up. "Actually, she's an ex-fiance. We broke up a week ago."

Hermione felt the weight in her heart lift up. _He's free._

"So do you have a boyfriend?" Draco asked, trying to break the icy wall that had built up between them.

"Nope."

"Did you ever have one?" Draco teased playfully.

"Well, there was one guy..but I dont know if we could have been anything more than friends."

"Such a pretty face and no men. What a shame." He took her chin in his hand and raised her head so she was looking into his eyes.

Hermione blushed again. "I never had time." Although she actually meant: _After what you did, I was too afraid to put myself in any relationship._

"Make time.." Draco whispered huskily, leaning in so that their noses were mere millimeters apart.

Hermione sqeezed her eyes shut, scared of what he might do next.

Draco laughed, and her eyes flew open "Come on, let's go." This time, he grabbed her hand, intwining his fingers with hers. "MERLOCK HALL!" He yelled with his wand hand raised up in the air, and seconds later, they were no longer on the dimmly lit sidewalk.

"So what is this conference for?" Hermione asked.

"Some stupid publicity stunt that Mr. Valdejo pulled. Said it would be good for my image." Draco stopped them in front of the door labeled conference room.

"Mr. Malfoy. Pleased you could make it." A stern doorman bowed at Draco, opening the door to the conference room for them.

Hermione giggled, following Draco into the room.

"Mr. Malfoy. Please look here. Mr. Malfoy!" Voices from different corners of the room went off, along with a storm of flashes from cameras. "Mr. Malfoy! Who is this girl?" A reporter asked, as a floating parchment and quill beside her copied down her words.

Draco smiled widely. "This is my stylist, Mya. She is joining us tonight so she can get a feel of my 'style'." He answered cockily, ushering Hermione away from the crowd of reporters and to the head of a long table.

"Mr. Malfoy will be answering some questions today. Please limit the questions to one per reporter. Thank you." A wizard announced nearby once Draco had seated himself casually in a chair besides Hermione.

"Are you dating your stylist, Mr. Malfoy?" A voice rang out from the back of the room.

"Mya? No, we are just working together." He stated bluntly, catching a blushing Hermione out of the corner of his eyes. _But I'd love to date her._

"Mr. Malfoy. What happened to your model fiance?" Another voice rang out from the middle of the room.

"We didn't work out." Draco drawled, seemingly uninterested.

Hermione sat next to him, thinking of various ways to jinx Ginny for making her come out on this date with Draco. _I'll short sheet her bed! No..too old for that. Uh..I'll put her in a full body bind! HA! Let's see how she likes-_

"Mya?"

Hermione looked up to see Draco standing with a worried look on his face. "Everyone's left already, what do you say, you and me going to get some coffee before we head back?"

"Mm, that sounds good."

* * *

Draco returned to his apartment after dropping off Mya at her house. His head swam with the conversations that they had had during that evening. _She really** is** smart, funny, and not to mention, damn beautiful. _

He was about to take off his shirt and do some relaxing when he heard a sharp rapping on the door.

"Coming." Draco said as he opened the door, sighing as his ex-fiance waltzed in accompanied by her posse. "What do you want Pansy?"

"Nothing. Just dropping off some of your clothes that you left at my house." She threw a silk drawstring pouch at him.

"Uh, okay." Draco stared at the trio in front of him. "So..." He felt Pansy's eyes drilling into his skull.

"It's your loss you know?" The girl on Pansy's right said.

"Zip it, Katrina." Pansy waved her hand in the air just as the girl was about to speak. "How are you doing?" She asked, her words hanging suspended in the silent room.

"I'm fine." Draco said, staring straight into Pansy's eyes.

"Don't worry Drake, I'll still be nice to you, even though you don't 'run' with us anymore." The gangly man to the left of Pansy smirked.

"Well, I'm busy, so could you guys go, please?" Draco swept his eyes across the model perfect group, crossing his arms across his chest.

"Ok, come on you guys, he's busy." Pansy turned to leave, but stopped again. "Good luck, Draco." She said over her shoulder, sincerely. "Toodles."

Draco rolled his eyes as he watched the retreating backs of his ex-fiance and her posse. _What the fuck was that about? _"How are you doing?" Draco mimicked Pansy. _God DAMN that woman! _He ran a hand through his hair and checked the time on his watch. 12 PM. _Time for some shuteye..._

* * *

Hermione glided through her apartment door after a polite goodnight kiss from Draco to find Ginny still up and waiting for her. 

"WHERE THE HELL WERE YOU HERMIONE GRANGER?!" Ginny screamed, using her whole name for the first time in 5 years.

"I was with Draco. On the date? That you MADE me go on?!" Hermione glared at Ginny, wondering why she was so mad at her own stupid idea.

"It's 11:30, and the conference shouldn't have gone after 9:00!" Ginny glared back.

"I'm a big girl, Ginny, I'm fine!" Hermione sighed, and grabbed Ginny's wrist, dragging her over to the sofa.

"Are you sure you are fine? He didn't try to do anything to you? You know girls always hide that kind of stuff, right?" Ginny peered at Hermione with her big brown eyes.

"I'm FINE, for the last time!" Hermione rolled her eyes, seriously, Ginny could get so overprotective sometimes.

"Okay." Ginny mumbled, after making sure Hermione was really ok. "So, how did it go?" She inquired eagerly. "Did you turn it on?" Ginny asked, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Well, I'm not sure, but he was totally flirting!" Hermione laughed. "He held my hand, and let me have his jacket! He was really sweet."

"HA! I told you this was going to work! It's working just perfectly!" Ginny smiled.

"Fine, so what else happened?" Ginny looked as eager as a child on christmas morning.

"Get this! He just called it off a week ago with his fiance."

"Oh my god! Really?"

"Yea! Can you believe it?" Hermione brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

Ginny shook her head, and thought a while before she spoke again. "So what about your next date."

"My next dat-what?!"


	5. no return

Trying to squeeze out a couple more chapters before school starts. SCHOOL STARTED...

* * *

"GINNY! I've got to go! I'm meeting Draco at Hogsmeade for some shopping." Grabbing her purse, Hermione ran out the door slamming it behind her. "HOGSMEADE!" She yelled as soon as she got out of the door. Feeling her feet lift off the ground, she closed her eyes, and seconds later, she was in hogsmeade. 

"Where have you been?" 

Spinning around, Hermione found Draco sitting in front of their meeting spot, Three Broomsticks. Seeing her turn around, Draco stood up and walked over to her. "Well, you _could_ stand there staring at me all day, or we could go get some butterbeer and do some fashion consulting. What do you think?" He smirked. 

Hermione turned red. _Oh yea, he might have outgrown his wimpiness, but he hasn't outgrown his cockiness. _"Uh, that sounds good to me. Let's go."

* * *

"How's this one?" Draco asked, picking out a black jean jacket. A cup of coffee and a muffin later, they were in the nearest men's clothing store, shopping for a couple of nice outfits. 

Hermione wrinkled her nose. "I don't really like it."

"And why not?" Draco took it off the hanger and threw it on himself. It immediately molded so it was the perfect size.

"It..nah, what about this one?" She handed him a blue jean jacket with the letter D sewn on the back.

"No! This one! It's more expensive." Draco said as if he was a little kid.

"More expensive?!" Hermione rolled her eyes. "Whatever, if you like it."

"Do you like it?" Draco teased.

"No I dont like it." She sniffed and raised her nose playfully.

"Alright, alright, we'll get that one!" Draco whipped the jean jacket away from her and pulled her towards the checkout counter. He pulled her close to him with his free hand, causing her to gasp.

Draco smirked. "What?"

"N-nothing." Hermione squirmed out of his arms.

"Do you like me? Huh? Huh?" He smirked as Hermione shot him a sideway's glance. He laughed and took Hermione's hand and dragged her towards the door.

"Hmph." She grabbed her hand back and crossed her arms, standing there unmoving. She looked up to the ceiling, ignoring Draco as he stood there looking very amused. Hermione heard a sigh and looked slightly downwards to find him standing right in front of her.

"Do you like me?" He peered into her face curiously. Hermione never answered the question, but instead ignored it and walked right out of the door.

"HEY! MYA, I asked you a question." She stopped suddenly, gasping as she felt someone heavy colliding into her back causing her to loose her grip and fall down. As she fell towards the ground, she found a pair of hands turning her around and cushioning her fall.

"Oomph." Hermione closed her eyes. _Why me? Why me?!_

"You didn't answer my question yet." Hermione stiffened as she heard the voice belonging to the body which now lay ontop of her.

"UGH! Get off of me." She shoved Draco off and got up, Draco followed suit.

"Aw, I'm sorry." He grabbed her arm as she continued to walk away. "Mya, I'm sorry." He pulled her back with such a force that she was sent spinning back into his arms.

She looked up into his eyes, still pretending to be mad. "I'm sorry, would you forgive me if I treated you to another round of butterbeers?" Draco looked at her hopefully.

"Mm." Hermione thought carefully. "Alright." She smiled and playfully whacked Draco in the chest, walking away and leaving Draco staring at her swaying behind. "What the-damn." He murmured, watching her walk away.

* * *

Hermione grumbled as she threw herself out on the sofa in front of Ginny. 

"Bad day?" Ginny raised her eyebrows.

"He is such a picky shopper. Only the best and the most expensive!" Hermione sighed. "It must be great having all that money at your fingertips."

"He was probably waiting forever for his father to die so he could get the rest of the money and the Malfoy Mansion." Ginny snickered.

"No..He isn't like that.." Hermione started.

"Oh yea he is."

"No, he isn't!" Hermione paused. "He's sweet." She smiled.

"Oh, so now we are defending Draco, are we?" Ginny snorted.

"No!" Hermione yelped.

"You like him dontcha?" Ginny's eyes bore through Hermione's skull.

"No-no, of course not!" Hermione lied.

"Well alright, because if you did, I'd understand and we can call of this whole revenge thing." Ginny looked disappointed.

"Pffft. No way. We are going to do this thing!" Hermione held a hand out for a high five. "WE ARE GOING TO DO THIS!"

"Alright." Ginny smiled grudgingly, giving her a high five.

* * *

Sorry it's so short...i've got loads of homework


	6. proper date

"So does she like you?" Blaise asked just before he did a perfect dive into the pool.

"I dunno, she wont say." Draco stepped out of the pool and grabbed a towel.

"Well, how are you going to find out if you dont ask her out?" Blaise asked, his head resting on his arms at the edge of the pool.

"Call her."

* * *

"Hey, Mya?" Draco said into his cell phone after arguing with Blaise nonstop for almost half an hour.

"Yea, Draco?" Hermione could recognize that voice anywhere.

"Um..hey listen, we've been working really hard on this style thing, and I think we should take a break.." Draco tapered off, receiving a hard nudge in the back from Blaise who was bouncing a ball against the wall.

"Oh.." Hermione's spirit dampened.

"We should have some fun, and play instead of working so hard all the time."

"Oh!" Hermione smiled to herself.

"And, uh, I never really got to ask you on a proper date." Draco jerked as Blaise elbowed him in the back again.

"STOP IT!" Draco seethed.

"Hurry up!" Blaise said back lazily, leaning against him.

"Go away!" Draco yelled, pushing Blaise away and watching his stomp off with his middle finger in the air. "Uh sorry about that." He cleared his throat as he turned back to talking to Hermione.

She chuckled. "No problem."

"So where were we?"

"..date?"

"Oh right." Draco paused, his stomach fluttering with butterflies. "Well I'm not going to ask you unless you say yes."

Hermione laughed. "Of course I would say yes."

There was a sharp intake of breath."Would you like to go out with me, Mya?"

Hermione smiled at his question. "Sure." She tilted her head back in her chair._ Wow, this is like a dream come true. No, this **is **a dream come true.

* * *

_

"Coming!" Hermione yelled at the tall hunky shadow before her door. _Damn, Draco is 15 minutes early! _She wrapped a bathrobe around herself, and pulling it tightly, she went to open the door. _And I've only gotten my hair done!_

"Mya, you look-" Draco chuckled as the door opened, getting a look at Hermione dressed in nothing but her bathrobe. He laughed, handing her the bouquet of roses he had in his arms. "Can I come in?" He stared, waiting for an answer.

"Oh, yea, yea." Hermione was jerked out of her thoughts. "Please come in. Give me the fifteen minutes I was supposed to have anyways!" She laughed and ducked into her bedroom, leaving Draco to explore the living room.

Draco looked around the cozy living room, and seated himself in one of the armchairs, sinking into the cushions and waited for Mya.

[15 min later]

"Draco?" He felt a hand land gently on his shoulder, and turning around he saw the most blinding beauty. "Mya? Wow, you look-you look great!" _Try f-ing hott! _Hermione was dressed in a silky peach spaghetti strap dress that accentuated her every curve, and draped across her arm was a white jean jacket. A pair of white strappy heels finished her perfect attire.

Draco stood up, and taking her arm, he led her out of her apartment and down to the lobby which was open for apparating.

"So where are we going?"

"It's a secret." Draco winked at her. "Malfoy Apartment!" Draco yelled, and moments later, they were standing in his apartment, darkened with candles hovering about the room.

"I thought you aren't allowed to apparate in here." Hermione said, amazed.

"I pulled a few strings." He winked and led her over to a table set for two in the middle of the living room.

"Wow, you did all of this?" Hermione took her seat in the chair Draco pulled out for her.

"Oh, I got some help." Draco sat down and with a snap of his fingers, a bottle of iced champange and two glasses appeared in front of them. "Care to have a drink?"

* * *

"What is this whole style thing for? Why did you decide that you needed a...fashion makeover?" Hermione asked over their dinner of chicken teriyaki. 

Draco chuckled. "Ha. You didn't know? I'm going to be a model/actor, whatever they want me to do. Besides, do I really need a reason? I made plenty of money at the ministry. Why not spend it?"

Hermione nodded. "Made...the ministry?" _Ha! Ex-deatheater-to-be..working for the ministry?! _

"Yea, I was the assistant minister, but I decided that job didn't quite suit me, so here I am, now a model." Draco smirked.

"Hmm. So where did you go..for school?" Hermione cocked her head to one side, waiting for an answer.

"Hogwarts." Draco said nochalantly, swirling his glass of grape wine. "What about you?" He looked up from his wine.

Hermione looked away. "I went to Beaubaxton." She lied.

Draco snickered. "If I'd known all the girls at Beaubaxton were as pretty as you, I would have transfered there immediately." He joked, making Hermione blush. "So...?"

"So what?" Hermione flicked her gaze back Draco.

"Aren't you going to tell me more about you?" His face broke out in an amused smile.

"Well, my parents are muggles.."She stopped to gauge Draco's expression which didn't change. "..they are orthadontists, and I am an only child."

Draco smiled, wider this time. "Okay, my turn. My parents are both pureblood, which, I have to say, isn't as perfect as it seems to be. I, too, am an only child. Actually, i only have one parent now, my father passed away quite a while ago."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Hermione said, sincerely.

Draco chuckled. "No problem, I've gotten over it."

"Mm. So did you play Quidditch at Hogwarts?" Hermione asked, although she already knew the answer.

"Mhmm. Yea." Draco looked up. "How'd you know."

"Uh-I-you told me before." Hermione stammered.

"Oh, right. Well, I was made team captain for my 5th, 6th, and 7th year." Draco smirked his ever so sexy smirk.

"Seeker?" Hermione murmured quietly.

"Huh? Yea, I did play seeker. How'd you know that?" Draco stared at her intently.

"Lucky guess." She answered, which Draco bought.

* * *

"Come. I have something to show you." Draco pushed back his chair and stood up to help Hermione out of hers. They had just finished their 3 course meal, and Draco said he had a surprise for her. 

Taking her hand, Draco took her over to the corner of the living room, and taking out his wand, he flicked it a couple of times, mutter the spell underneath his breath. Hermione gasped as she looked down to find her dress had shrunk down to nothing but a tropical colored bikini and a tan sarong around her waist. Draco, on the other hand, was now clad in nothing but a pair of khaki shorts, bare-chest and with his fab abs showing. Hermione looked down to see her feet buried in warm white sand, and gazing around, she realized that the corner of the living room had turned into a small beach of their own, complete with palm trees, an ocean, and tiki torches.

"Wow.." Hermione laughed. "This is..wow!" She laughed again, embarrassed that anyone would ever do this for her. Walking over to the water, she looked in to see it was as clear as crystal, and fish of different shapes and colors were visible beneath it.

"So, you like it?" Draco came up behind her.

"Oh, I love it!" Hermione dipped her hand into the surprisingly warm water, stirring up the sand.

"I never thought you would be amused by the water, but if you are, that's fine. I'll just dance on my own." Draco snickered as she looked up at him. Extending a hand, he pulled her up and with one hand, pulled her close into his body. A snap later, a soft romantic melody played in the background as the two moved slowly to the beat.

Hermione laughed as Draco dipped her low, and then pulled her back again, this time closer to his body. He nuzzled the tip of her nose slightly with his, their lips dangerously close together..

"Hello, Draco."

Hermione whipped her head around to see a pretty blonde girl dressed in a tight leather dress, walking into Draco's apartment unannounced.

"Uh, hi." Draco abruptly let go of Hermione's waist, stepping back so there was about a foot of space between them. He kept his eyes downcast as he introduced them to each other. "Mya, this is Pansy Parkinson, my ex-fiance. Pansy, this is Mya, my stylist."

"Did I come at a bad time?" Pansy asked coolly, her eyes flicking from Hermione's face to Draco's face and back again.

"No-no," Draco stammered. "I was just showing her the beach I conjured up." He whipped his hand around and immediately, the sandy shores and palm trees disappeared. Hermione's bikini and sarong turned back into her peach colored dress, and Draco was no longer bare-chest in his khaki shorts.

"We need to talk." Pansy drawled, in the way that had Hermione shivering back at Hogwarts.

Draco's head snapped up as he heard those words.

Pansy flicked a perfectly manicured nail at Hermione. "Could you ask her to please leave."

He stood unmoving, and Hermione took this as her cue to leave. "Um, it's alright, I'll go." She grabbed her jacket and fled out of his apartment, sprinting down the stairs and out into the refreshing night air.

* * *

"You're early. How was it?" Ginny asked from her spot on the sofa, reading a romance novel. Hermione latched the apartment door tightly behind her. 

"Oh, it was perfect. A candlelight dinner, then a walk on a beach he conjured up in his living room. We danced, and then we almost kissed!"

"Almost?" Ginny snickered. "So what happened?"

Hermione sighed "His ex-fiance showed up, and I decided I should leave."

"You will never guess who his ex-fiance was." Hermione's voice became softer. "PANSY PARKINSON." She snorted. "Can you believe they were even ENGAGED to get MARRIED?!"

Ginny sat, clutching her sides in laughter. "No way in hell I thought they were going to end up together! Ha, the more important for you to win Draco over! That would be like..revenge times two!!"

"Anyways..she just waltzed into his apartment out of no where and asked to talk to him..." Hermione stopped.

"And?" Ginny prompted.

"And - and he didn't even try to stop me from leaving!" Hermione waved her hand around wildly. "That totally means he still likes her right?"

"No I doubt it, he was probably just too embarrassed or something." Ginny said soothingly.

"Well what do I do now?" Hermione sighed.

"Play hard to get!"

"What?!"

"Seriously, block him off for a couple of days. No phone calls, don't return his messages. I swear, he will come groveling back on his knees!" Ginny smirked.

"Are you sure?" Hermione questioned doubtfully.

"POSITIVE! It always works, and this HAS to work!"

Hermione chuckled. "Alright then."

* * *

"Hey Jim." Hermione smiled as she made her way to her cubicle. It was Monday, and she was all pumped up for a new week at work. 

"Good morning. Don't work too hard." Jim waved and walked away.

Arriving at her desk, Hermione looked up to find Draco sitting contently in her swivel chair. She ignored him and started to sort the piles of papers that had gathered on her desk.

"You didn't return my messages." Draco said, never removing his gaze from her body.

"I was busy." Hermione stated clearly.

"Is this about Pansy? Because I can explain." Draco got up and let Hermione take her seat.

"I just felt like you needed some space." Hermione continued to shuffle papers.

"So you're not mad?" Draco walked over and placed his hands on Hermione's shoulder.

"No!" Hermione turned to look at him as if that was the dumbest question ever. _A little jealous maybe.._


	7. lies

Much apologies for the infrequent updates, but as we all know, sophmore year is a HUGE jump from freshman year..so hang in there until i catch up. expect 1 chapter every month or so.

* * *

"So...we're cool?" Draco asked, which caused Hermione to smile. 

"Cool."

"So, uh, do you want to go do something today? Take the day off?" Draco suggested.

"I don't know, there are some pretty important things going on today.."

"Aw, come on, just tell your boss we are going out to do some..shopping."

"I-really, I'd rather stay here and work."

"Na-uh you arent, you are coming with me." With that, Draco pulled Hermione out of her swivel chair and dragged her towards the floo elevator.

Minutes later, the two of them were trapezing through a department store in downtown london, holding hands and laughing about the most random things.

"Okay, this is my all time favorite store." Draco claimed, steering Hermione into a brightly lit store.

"Morphus?" Hermione glanced at him quizzically.

"Dunno." He reached out grabbed the hand of the manager who had just come up to greet him.

"Hello Mr. Malfoy, your private lounge is open." He smiled. "Feel free to ask for assistance."

Draco chuckled. "There will be no need, I have my own stylist right here." He said, winking at Hermione and nodding to the manager as he backed away to leave them alone. "Well, I'm going to go chill in the lounge, do you want to pick out some things you want me to try on?"

"HEY! That is unfair to the extreme." Hermione screeched rolling her eyes.

"Well you were the one who wanted to do her 'job'." Draco detached his hand's from her's and crossed his arms.

Hermione pouted, knowing that he was only trying to get on her nerves. "FINE!" She huffed and walked away leaving Draco behind her.

**

* * *

**

"Hey! Mya!"

Hermione turned around from the nearby clothes rack to the feminine voice to find herself staring into the huge eyes of Pansy Parkinson. _What is she doing here?!_

Forcing on a smile, she returned the greeting. "Hi Pansy."

"So what are you doing here?" Pansy's smile was so fake and so big that Hermione was afraid her face was going to rip.

"Oh, uh I was doing some shopping with-" Hermione got out before Pansy interrupted.

"Draco?" Her smile lessened.

"Uh yea." Hermione replied nonchalantly although she looked at Pansy funnily.

"This is his favorite store."

Hermione glanced away. "So I heard." She picked at the price tag on the shirt she had chosen, not knowing that the wheels were turning inside Pansy's head. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, just doing some shopping with one of Draco's friend, Blaise. Have you heard of him?"

Hermione panicked, did Pansy know who she was? _PLAY COOL! _"Nope, I've never heard of him.."

[Pansy's POV]

That bitch! WHAT the fuck is she playing at? I know who she is, and she can't hide it. Maybe Draco here is too blind to see it, but I know who she really is! I KNOW!

_The TV was on, and Pansy randomly flicked to a news channel, her eyes lighting up as she saw Draco and his oh-so-sexy body seated on stage. It was some interview for new and rising models. As she watched the show, she tuned out everything but him and solely watched his movements: when his face lit up with a smile, or when he broke out in laughter causing his whole body to shake. She thought to herself sadly, "Did I make a mistake? Should I have let him go?!"_

I'm taking Draco back, and there is nothing this bitch can do to stop me!

[End of Pansy's POV]

"So, anyways, did you hear? Draco and I got back together." Pansy smiled another huge fake smile.

"Oh really.." Hermione glanced past Pansy and through the glass doors of the lounge and saw the back of Draco's head as he chatted animately with Blaise. "Well, congratulations." Hermione forced a smile.

"Okay, then I got to go, I'll see you around, I guess? At that party that Draco's throwing next weekend?"

"Mm." Hermione could barely register everything that was happening. _So Draco had been playing her all along. She was nothing but the third wheel.. _"I should go, can you do me a favor and hand these to Draco? I think he would look great in these." She smiled sadly and handed Pansy the jackets and jeans she had picked out for Draco.

"I will be sure to pass on the message." Pansy smirked. "Toodles!" And with that, she turned and flounced into the lounge.

* * *

Hermione trudged into her apartment, to be greeted by Ginny's concerned eyes. 

"How'd it go?" She tugged on Hermione's sleeve as she walked by.

"Great..he's completely in love.." Hermione lied and said somewhat sarcastically.

"Perfect! I told you the plan would work!" Ginny tossed the phone at Hermione. "Now call him and break it off."

Hermione took the cell phone and retreated to her room, drowning herself in some muggle music before she called him. Maybe it would be the best. That way, she would never have to see him again..

"Hey Draco, listen, maybe we should stop seeing each other. You know, I can't let personal affairs get into the way of my career. Sorry if I was any trouble. Wish you the best of luck, and I will send someone else over as a replacement. Bye."

Hermione hung up the phone, blinking back the tears she knew would come storming down her cheeks if she didn't hold them back. _It's over. It's all over. _She threw herself on her bed and drowned herself in sad romantic songs until she fell into a deep and restless sleep.

* * *

"Hey! I'm home." Hermione threw her bag and jacket on the nearest armchair. "Ginny?" 

"Mya, I'm in the kitchen." She heard Ginny's voice say.

"There are some messages for you on the phone." Ginny said, raising her eyebrows.

Hermione leaned over to check the answering machine. "10 messages?! From who?"

"Tch, who do you think? Malfoy of course. You won't believe how many freaking messages he left on the phone." Ginny rolled her eyes. "How pathetic! Even for a Malfoy. I mean seriously, listen to them."

Hermione punched the play button, listening as the voice came on announcing that there were 10 voice messages.

"Message One. Hey Mya, it's Draco, I don't understand.. Call me back later, alright babe?"

[beep]

"Message Two. Hey, it's Draco again. Is it me? Did I do something wrong? Call me back."

[beep]

"Message Three. Mya, I don't know what I did, but whatever it is, I promise I can change."

[beep]

"Message Four. Please-"

[beep]

"Message Five. Sorry about that last message. Please forgive me, Mya, for whatever I did."

[beep]

"Message Six. Are you mad at me?"

[beep]

"Message Seven. Mya, where are you? I know you are avoiding me."

[beep]

"Message-"

"ARGH." Screamed a frustrated Hermione, deleting the three last messages. She slammed the table with her palms and stormed away into her room, hidden tears streaming down her face. _Why me? Why did I have to be the one to fall in love with him again? Why?!_


	8. a job in london

sorry if it isnt "wizardy" enough...roll eyes

* * *

Tears ran unchecked down Hermione's paled face. Now it was all over. _Why do I feel so bad? _She would never have to pretend to be someone she wasn't anymore. _I haven't been pretending.._Hermione had to control every nerve she possessed to keep from reaching over for the phone and calling Draco to apologize. 

"Hey Mya, are you alright?" Ginny stuck her head in after knocking softly.

Hastily, Hermione wiped her tears away and lied. "Mm. I'm fine, I was just thinking about how much i would miss you if i took up that job offer in Paris."

"Oh my god!" Ginny squealed. "You got the job? When did you find out?"

Hermione sniffled. "This morning."

"You are going?"

"Yea, there's nothing here for me anyways." Hermione smiled sadly. _Draco would never want me back after he learns about what we did.. _"I'm leaving next Saturday."

Blinking back tears of happiness, Ginny enveloped Hermione in a huge bear hug. "I'm so happy for you Mya!"

Hugging her back, Hermione whispered. "Yea, me too.."

_Meanwhile.._

"GODDAMNIT where is she?" Draco growled, and in his anger tossing over a table.

"Chill, Draco." Blaise yawned from the corner of Draco's living room.

"I can't 'chill,' Blaise, and I won't 'chill' until i figure out why the hell Mya is avoiding me!" Draco turned on his friend in frustration.

"Well scuz me, I'm going to bed. I suggest you not stay up past 2AM, we have a conference tomorrow." Blaise yawned again, and patting Draco on the back, he sauntered into the nearby guest room.

Draco looked around at his darkened apartment, gently massaging his temples. Why was Mya trying to avoid him? Where had she gone anyways? One second he could see her picking out clothes from the racks, and the next second she was gone as if she had vanished into thin air. He hadn't said anything, had he?

With disturbing thoughts running through his mind, he fell into a restless sleep on the sofa.

* * *

Sorry it was so short, and sorry to say, there's only about 2 chappies left, and then i can start on my new fic! yay!! 


	9. harsh reality

I KNO I KNO! so short. so i'm gonna give this chapter to u guys, although i was giong to wait a couple of weeks. here ya go, hope its long enough

* * *

Draco's party. Saturday Night. 

Draco greeted guests at the door, keeping his eyes peeled for Mya, who had promised she wouldn't miss it for anything. But after the last few days, he wasn't sure..

_Coming home after a long day at the ministry, Draco checked the messages on his answering machine which was beeping and whirling like crazy. "Alright, alright, i'm getting to it!" He pressed the play button and listened as the message came on._

_"One message" The quirky voice came from the machine. 'DAMN THESE MUGGLE CONTRAPTIONS.' Draco thought._

_beep_

_"Uh, hey Draco, it's Mya." Draco heard a sniff, and wondered if she was crying. __"I don't know how to say this, but maybe we should stop seeing each other..You know, I can't let personal affairs get in the way of my career. I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble. Bye."_

'What the hell was that about?!' Draco thought as he wandered over to the bar and got himself a drink.

"Nice party, Draco." He turned around at the sound of a feminine voice to see Pansy Parkinson, his ex-girlfriend, clad in a revealing way too revealing red dress.

"Hello Pansy. I don't remember inviting you." Draco drawled, checking her out.

"Don't sound like you didn't expect me. I recieved an invitation from your own dear mother." Pansy smirked. "Besides, I have something to show you."

"Look Draco." She said as she plucked out their shrunken Hogwarts yearbook from her purse. Tapping it lightly with her wand, it instantly grew to the normal size, and she replaced her wand within her purse.

Pansy flipped to a page, pointing at a bucktoothed brunette with a I-Know-It-All smile on her face.

"Well, if this isn't that girl, that stylist? Mya." She watched in amusement as Draco's face turned from bored to shocked.

"No way! Her last name isn't even...Granger..." Draco froze. Mya's last name was Granger. What had taken him so long to realize that? "Hermione Granger?!" Draco sputtered as he read the name underneath her picture.

"Yup, to imagine that you were spending time with that girl without knowing it." Pansy said smugly, ordering herself a drink.

"I'm amazed she even wasted her breath talking to me..after everything I put her through." Draco chuckled sadly.

"What was that?" Pansy looked up from the yearbook.

"Nothing." Draco swirled his drink nonchalantly, leaning against the bar table.

"I did you a favor, Draco, by telling her that we were back together.."

"YOU WHAT?!" Draco yelped, attracting glances from the other guests.

"I rid you of that geeky nerd you call a mudblood." Pansy said, trailing a finger seductively down his well-defined chest.

"Let that go, will you? That was years ago, when I was stupid enough to go out with a bitch like you." He brushed her finger roughly off his chest, emphasizing the word stupid. "Just go. GO!" He repeated when he realized she was still standing beside him.

"Well excuse me for caring." Pansy whirled around and stomped away, her slutty outfit disappearing from his view.

Draco could almost bang his head against the hard marble counter. _Damn it! I should've known Pansy was behind this. That explains the awkward message she left last week.._

He took a running start, heading out of his apartment. This was going to take a lot of explaining, but he would do anything to get Hermione back.

* * *

Draco ran up the stairs of the apartment building. Stopping as he reached flat 1337 and glancing down at a slip of paper to make sure he had gotten the address right, he pounded fearlessly on the door. 

"COMING! Dang it, keep your pants on!" A female voice called out from within the apartment.

"I need to speak to Mya." Draco blurted once the door opened.

Ginny stuck her head out, narrowing her eyes at the man before her, a bouquet of tulips in his hands."Well, well, if it isn't Mr. Malfoy." Ginny crossed her arms tightly around her chest, glaring at the blonde man on her doorstep.

"Hello to you too, Ms. Weasley." Draco smirked, instantly recognizing the fiery little redhead from Hogwarts. "You've grown."

"Don't you hello me, Malfoy." Ginny snarled. "And Mya isn't here. She left for London an hour ago."

"What? She is supposed to be at my party." Draco's smirk fell.

"Well boohoo, she ain't coming." Ginny snickered, moving to slam the door in his face.

"Wait!" Draco rammed his shoulder into the door, leaning all his weight on it.

"Why?" Ginny glared out from a crack between the wall and the door.

"I want to know something." Draco said. "Why would she do this to me?"

"You know what, Malfoy?" Ginny smirked, reopening the door and glaring square into Draco's eyes. "Maybe Mya was too chicken too tell you herself. But I'm not. It was a joke, alright, it was all a joke to make you fall in love and then dump you. You deserved it, after everything you put her through in school. Now do you know how much it hurts?"

The information sunk slowly into Draco's brain. "No-no, Mya would never do that."

"Well she did! Alright? Now beat it!" Ginny sneered.

"I-I don't know what to say." Draco ran a hand through his long blonde hair. "Ginny, I'm not the boy I was 10 years ago. I've changed, damnit!" He threw the bouquet down on the floor and ran off.

Ginny's gaze softened as she picked up the flowers he had dropped, her eyes clouding over as she read the note attached. "What have I done? What have I done?" She muttered to herself as she closed the door behind her. "I've really screwed up this time.." Quivering as she walked to her room, she picked up her wizo-cell and gave Hermione a call.

"Hello, this is Mya." Hermione's voice came from the other end.

"I'm so sorry Mya, you won't believe what I did." Ginny cried.

"Calm down Gin. What happened?" Hermione sat up straighter in her seat on the train.

"Malfoy-came-over-and-and-he-had-flowers-and-I-I-TOLD-HIM-ABOUT-OUR-JOKE." Ginny broke down sobbing.

"What?!" Hermione gasped.

"He really likes you, Mya. It broke his heart. It really did."

Hermione sighed. "Too late now, Gin. Maybe you should have listened to me."

"I KNOW! I KNOW!" Ginny sobbed. "I wish I didn't tell him. You should have seen him. He was so sweet, and-and he had flowers and everything. He changed Mya, he changed for the better."

"Yea? I know--To tell you the truth Ginny, I-I dunno, I kinda like him." Hermione leaned her forehead against the cold glass windowpane, staring out into the rainy sky.

"Why didn't you tell me when I asked you?" Ginny demanded.

"I-I thought it was just one of those 24 hour infatuations, you know?" Hermione explained.

A static-y breath came in at the other end. "Get off at the next stop, Mya."

"WHAT?! Ginny, I have a meeting in 5 hours!"

"I have a plan."

Hermione groaned. "Not another one of your plans, Ginny."

"I swear! Get off the train at the next stop and apparate back to the apartment. I'll be waiting for you!"

"But G-" Hermione grumbled, hearing a dull tone and realizing that Ginny had hung up on her. "This better be good." Hermione grabbed her things as the train lurched to a stop at the train station and jumped off.


	10. happily ever after

Hermione apparated back to her room, curious as to why Ginny would suddenly ask her to come home. She looked in to find her bed covered entirely in dresses and no sign of Ginny. "Ginny?"

A muffled voice emmitted from the closet. "I'm in here."

Hermione walked over. "WHAT are you doing?" She snapped at Ginny's rear end.

"I'm looking for the other foot of this shoe." Ginny said, standing up and waving a black strappy high heel from her forefingers. "For such a neat freak, I would've thought your closet would be the same."

"And you call yourself a witch." Hermione rolled her eyes, and drew out her wand. "Accio parim!" The missing foot of the strappy high heel flew into her outstretched hands from the pile that Ginny had been scrounging through.

"Nice." Ginny raised an eyebrow, staring into the face of a confused Hermione. "You have to teach me that one sometime."

"So where are you going? And why do you need to borrow my shoes?" Hermione asked.

Ginny snickered. "_I_ am not going anywhere. YOU are going to Draco's party." Ginny pushed Hermione over to the bed where a flowing baby-blue dress had been picked out.

"No. No. Oh no. I am not letting you talk me into anything stupid again." Hermione backed away from Ginny.

"Oh yes, you are so letting me talk you into something stupid, especially if you love this guy." Ginny's voice dropped to a whisper and she grabbed Hermione by the shoulders.

"NO! He must hate me!" Hermione struggled against Ginny's strong force.

"No he doesn't, he loves you, Mya." Ginny looked at Hermione to find her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "Trust me."

"Ginny, the last time I trusted you, I got myself into this mess." Hermione glared at her.

Ginny looked pained. "I know, Hermione, and I'm sorry, but could you listen to me just one more time."

Hermione had herself face down on her bed, burying her face in her pillow. "Mmmm…" Was all Ginny could hear her mumbling.

Ginny grabbed her by the shoulders and jerked her up. "HERMIONE! You love him, dont you? And I know he loves you back, so what are you waiting for?"

Hermione sat up and sighed. "I can't..I can't Ginny."

"YES you can!" Ginny thrusted the dress and shoes into Hermione's stomach. "Go get him!"

Hermione took the dress from Ginny's outstretched hand, her fingers drifting over the soft sheer fabric. "You won't let me sleep until I go, huh?"

"Damn right." Ginny smirked. "Now go get changed."

Hermione smiled at her. "Just this once, okay?"

Ginny nodded. "Just this once."

Fifteen minutes later found Hermione in Draco's apartment building. She had practically been shoved by Ginny out of the door, and she was freezing. Feeling in her purse, Hermione realized she had left her wand in her room and couldn't cast a warming spell to end the chilly feeling she was getting.

Cautiously, Hermione rang the doorbell of Draco's large flat. It looked curiously dark and quiet for a place hosting a party.

"Who is it?" A breathless female voice yelled.

Hermione was hesitant as she said quietly, "It's Mya, um would you just tell Draco that i stopped by?" Muttering a thank you, she turned to leave as the door opened and a frazzled blond woman peeked her head out. Her lipstick was smeared all over the face and she was panting quite heavily.

"Oh, uh alright then. Goodbye, Mya"

Hermione smiled sadly and turned around to leave again. _Oh yea, Draco loooves me, thats why he's snogging another girl. Pshh, look what i got myself into again. I swear i am NEVER listening to Ginny again._

"Wait." A familiar voice called behind her. Hermione almost stopped and turned around, but she kept walking with her head down. She just wanted to get out of this place as fast as possible. Away from this nightmare! However, she was stopped by a strong hand around her wrist. "Hermione…"

"Hermione." The voice said again, this time quietly as if pleading her to stay.

Hermione turned around and stared into the eyes of a disgruntled Draco. His eyes were bloodshot, and it looked as if he was quite drunk. "Why didn't you tell me?" He asked quietly.

"There was nothing to tell you, Mr. Malfoy. And I'm sorry for the way I acted. It was not professional, and I am completely okay with you telling my boss." Hermione wrangled her wrist out of his grasp, but he just grabbed her other one.

"Hermione…why…?" Draco's eyes had turned a bluish gray.

"Does it matter?" Hermione asked. "You're engaged to Pansy aren't you? What are you doing snogging another girl anyways?" She averted her eyes away from his and towards the girl still standing next to the door.

Draco looked down as if he was ashamed.

Hermione sighed. "Okay then, I'll leave you two alone. Bye…Draco." She whispered, his name lingering on her lips as she removed her wrist from his clasp. "Good luck." She gently squeezed his hand. "Goodbye."

Hermione managed to stomp all the way down the corridor, unshed tears gleaming in her eyes, before she felt someone grab her around the waist from behind.

"Stop!"

Hermione stiffened, feeling Draco's weight leaning on her. _How much had he drunk tonight?_

"I really don't want to talk to you when you're drunk." Hermione struggled out of his grasp and ran down the hall to the elevator. Oh how she wished the stupid apartment building allowed apparating!

"I-HERMIONE!" Draco rushed into the elevator before Hermione could close the door completely. "Listen to me." He took her firmly by the shoulders and raised her chin so she was looking into his eyes.

Hermione jerked her chin out of his hand and look down at her shoes. "I really don't want to talk to you right now."

"What do you want me to do?" Draco shouted, his voice muffled by the small elevator they were in. "Grovel at your feet, Hermione? Is that what you want me to do?"

Hermione didn't answer. They had reached the ground floor, and Hermione stepped out, hoping Draco would just leave her alone, but to her dismay, he followed her.

"Because I'll do it." Draco whispered, getting down on his knees and gripping on to Hermione's thighs.

"Draco, don't." Hermione murmured.

"Will you hear me out then?" Draco started to raise himself from the servile position.

Hermione nodded still avoiding the piercing gaze of Draco's now light gray eyes.

"Hermione, I know we weren't the best of friends at Hogwarts, and you had every right to keep your real identity from me…" Draco swallowed. "These few months that I've gotten to spend with you have been – he chuckled – amazing. I never knew that I could fall so hard for anyone, but you proved me wrong."

"Hermione, I can't keep you out of my mind. I fell in love with Mya, but now that I know she's Hermione, I love her even more." He took one of Hermione's hand and held it between his own, sending a tingling feeling down to the base of her spine.

"I know it was all a plan to get revenge, but I still love her. She gave me a chance, knowing that I had hurt her so much in school." Draco stopped, caressing the soft hand he had in his grasp. "I don't blame her for what she did, and I hope she can forgive me-for being that pompous ass." He added, searching Hermione's face for an answer.

Hermione bit her lip, lowering her gaze to Draco's firm chest. Tears were starting to fall from the corner of her eyes, tears of happiness, sadness, a jumble of feelings she was experiencing. "What about Pansy?" She muttered.

"Pansy! Merlin, Hermione! How many times do I have to tell you? We are over, and there is only one person I want to be with!" Draco shouted. "I just want to be with you…" He whispered in her ear, pulling her against him.

"You know." Hermione started, mumbling into Draco's chest. "At first I told myself that i could never fall for you. You were the enemy, you were the one that made my life so hard at Hogwarts." Hermione sniffled. "Do you know how many nights I cried myself to sleep because of something you did, Draco?"

Draco shut his eyes. _Merlin, how could I have ever hurt such an amazing woman?_

"..but I guess i fell pretty hard too." Hermione continued. "You've changed so much, and I couldn't stop thinking of you. What I did was really wrong, and it was so hurtful…" Hermione trailed off.

But Draco didn't let her finish and instead captured her lips in the most passionate kiss she had ever experienced. Her tears ran in with the saliva, making the kiss the all more exciting and special.

He broke away, leaning his chin atop Hermione's head. "No more revenge, ever?" He wrapped his arms around Hermione's waist, holding her protectively.

"Never." Hermione whispered into his chest.

**

* * *

THE END! **


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